The Gujarat High Court has dismissed a writ petition seeking to condone the delay in filing a GST appeal, emphasising that the court’s extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 226 cannot be used to bypass specific statutory limitation periods. The traders had cited the illness of an accountant and the closure of business as primary reasons for the lapse.
The Division Bench, comprising Justice AS Supehia and Justice Pranav Trivedi, ruled that the appellate authority correctly rejected the appeal as it lacked the power to condone delays beyond the maximum period prescribed by law.
The legal dispute originated from an Order-in-Original dated April 24, 2024. Under Section 107 of the GST Act, 2017, an aggrieved party must file an appeal within three months, with a discretionary extension of one additional month if sufficient cause is shown. In this instance, the petitioner uploaded the appeal on October 5, 2024, which resulted in a delay of six days beyond the maximum permissible 120-day window. The petitioner argued that the court should exercise its powers to condone this delay, citing the illness of accountant and the closure of business as reasons for the lapse.
The petitioner’s counsel emphasised that GST liability totalling Rs 14.35 lakh, had already been paid, and an additional deposit was made during the filing of the appeal. The petitioner further undertook to settle the remaining liability of Rs 85,316.
Source from: https://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/no-relief-for-delay-in-filing-gst-appeal-hc-junks-writ-petition/81905597.html
